Richmond coach Damien Hardwick expects further improvement from the Tigers in 2013, but has stressed a finals appearance is not a fait accompli.

Richmond finished in 12th position in 2012 with 10 and a half wins, two more than it managed in 2011.

“People will see a natural progression for us of going into the eight, but unfortunately there’s no rite of passage,” Hardwick said.

“We look at the sides above us, and there are no guarantees that any of them are going to drop out.

“So we just have to improve and make sure we earn our place in the eight, and that’s what we’ll be firmly entrenched in doing.”

The Tigers lost a number of close games in 2012, which ultimately put a finals berth out of reach.

The team’s only loss by more than 22 points was in Round 1 against Carlton, when it was within a goal in the final term.

“The reality of the situation is that you have to win games to get there, and there are no easy games in AFL.  It was a reminder for us last year when we lost a number of games by a small margin,” Hardwick said.

“We need to improve in a number of areas to get to where we want to be.”

Later this week, the full Richmond squad will train for the first time together in the 2013 pre-season.